Out of the Blue | Eve Brodeur | Presented by Schrader’s
By Jensen Amyotte
Name: Ève Brodeur
Date of Birth: November 25th, 1999
Hometown: Laval, QC
School/grade/Occupation: First year Occupational therapy student at University of Montreal and brand specialist at MyPITBOARD
Race Number: My original racing number is 141, but I’ll be proudly wearing the 1 for WMX and 72 for MX2 next season!
Bike: KTM 250 SX-F
Race Club: Quebec Provincial and the Triple Crown series
From the beginning, tell us about your motocross career and how it came about.
I was basically born with a bike waiting for me in the garage. My dad (Sylvain Brodeur) had been racing for a few years and I was raised in the motocross world. I started riding myself at 4 and did my first gate drop at 5 years old. From this point on, I haven’t missed a single season of racing and almost my whole world revolves around this sport.
When not on a bike how do you keep yourself busy?
So, during the summer, I don’t do much except ride, train people and get in shape for the races. Whereas my winters are the complete opposite. I’ve recently started university and that’s literally all I do all day, every day, now. Being a first year university student has its challenges, but even more now that it’s all online due to the pandemic.
Other than that, I’m also working hard with the MyPITBOARD team to get ready for our upcoming launch in December. I’m also excited for the snow to actually settle in permanently so can we take our sleds out and ride!
Being successful in both WMX and the MX2 class, what mindset do you use to not get in over your head when racing with the boys?
Well, it’s definitely not an easy thing to do, but I try to brainwash myself into believing that riding with boys is not much different! I also have to remind myself very often that I belong with them and I deserve to race that MX2 class just like any other guy on the gate. It definitely gets tough at times, because not everyone agrees with me racing this class and some are not shy about their opinion regarding that, but I can’t let myself be affected by it, because the results are there to prove otherwise.
How was your 2020 season? What are your plans for the winter/2021 season?
My 2020 was nothing short of incredible. I pushed myself beyond what I ever thought I could handle and came out on the other side beyond proud of what I had done. I raced two classes, WMX and MX2, every weekend and rode more laps than anyone else at the track, which was a little crazy looking back (laughs).
As for this winter, I will seriously just focus on school and work since I won’t be able to go down south this year (dang Covid). It’s honestly more work than I expected so I don’t mind having more time to relax and make sure I come into the winter semester rested, although it will be very hard to not ride again until April or May. I’ll definitely be more than ready to hit the track and get into training mode, once the snow melts, for the 2021 season!
I’m not sure what our next season will look like, but don’t worry, I’ll be there for whatever they can put together.
Who is your all-time favourite rider?
Honestly, I don’t think I have one! I’ve always been super impressed by women like Heidi Cooke, Jocelyn Facciotti and Jolene Van Vugt who paved the way for women like me to take over. I know it’s not the most interesting answer, but I seriously don’t have any name in mind! Other than that, I’ve always liked Ryan Dungey and Ken Roczen, they’re great riders with such a cool history and I love that.
From racing the women’s pro nationals which was your favourite national track and why?
Considering we only raced at 3 different tracks this summer and most of these races were in the deep mud, I don’t have a lot of options, but for this year, I’ll go with Sand Del Lee! Don’t get me wrong, I love how rough and deep Gopher (Dunes) always is and I love racing on the hard pack soil of Walton, but SDL was just pretty great this year!
What event do you look forward to most every year? One you don’t ever want to miss?
100% Walton Transcan/National! I mean, how can it not be? I love the family atmosphere and all the events that they put together. Plus, the track holds a special place in my heart so I couldn’t say any other track! Shoutout to Brett (Lee) and Mel (Lee) for putting together an awesome event this year as well as 2 nationals in such restricted and difficult conditions. It was definitely the highlight of the racers’ 2021 season, I’m certain of that.
What do you think Canadian WMX will be like in 5 years?
That’s a difficult question. I’ve seen the Canadian WMX change so much already in the past 9 years (I can’t believe I’ve been racing this series for this long already!) and I hope that it gets even better. However, what would be better? No one really knows.
My dad and I, as well as many others, like Claudie Lissimore (Lapointe), Leah Clarke and now Dominique Petruska (Daffe), have tried really hard to come up with the perfect plan and solution for our series, but I don’t think there’s a solution that will please everyone. I can only hope that so many more girls will get involved and will commit to growing the class and breaking down barriers.
I also doubt I’ll be racing the WMX class for another full 5 years, so I’m very excited who will be the new top female by then!
What are your biggest accomplishments to date?
That’s a hard tie between my 9 WMX national championships and my last season in MX2, earning myself a national number (72) for the first time ever. They are both so meaningful to me, in very different ways nonetheless, and I don’t think anything compares to the feeling I felt when accomplishing those things. My overall podium at Loretta in 2011 also has a special place in my heart.
What is the biggest lesson that motocross racing has taught you so far?
Motocross has taught me that nothing comes easy. If you want to have something or accomplish something, you have to work for it and deserve it. That’s when all the tough times come to frustration and make it all worth it. Sometimes you have to blindly invest yourself in something, without expecting anything in return, in order for great things to actually happen!
Do you have one piece of advice for females wanting to get into motorsports? Or try other kinds of motorsports?
Don’t give up! I know it’s like the most cliché thing ever, but I can’t stress it enough. Any sport has its own challenges, but doing motorsports as a female takes it to a whole new level! So do your own thing, learn from your mistakes and don’t let anyone convince you that you can’t do it all! Most important of it all, have fun doing it!!
Who would you like to thank?
Thanks to you, Jensen, and Direct Motocross for giving me the opportunity to talk about my season! I would obviously like to thank KTM Canada as well as Mathias Sport for my great set-up. FXR racing for bringing me on board this year and making me look fresh 24/7. MyPITBOARD for taking my training program to the next level and helping me grow personally by bringing me on their team. And then Oakley, FMF Racing, Dunlop, Ossur, Twice Production, 6D helmets, Motofitness, Dirt Care, Nine1metal, Seco Seat Cover, TwentySixSuspension and again, my parents, my boyfriend and everyone who contributed to my success this season or cheered me on! Big love.
